Lost Letters of the Forest
by Annabel Wynters
Summary: He loved her so much, forbidden, cruel, heart breaking love. Will she ever know the truth? Red Ridinghood/Wolf
1. Chapter 1

Fairytales, Brothers Grimm. The handsome Prince comes to rescue the beautiful Princess, the lost children find their way home, or my personal favorite, the hunter kills the Big Bad Wolf in the end. These are all lies if you ask me, but you didn't. Did you?

I think it would be only fair if you, my precious little reader, knew what was never told in the prejudiced webs weaved by collectors, and to give them the great honor they deserve, we'll begin this tale like any other.

Once upon a time…

He sat by the candlelight of his desk as he looked over the letter once more. This letter would decide the events that would unfold if everything went to plan. He folded the scribbled parchment into a perfect square and wrapped a blood ribbon 'round it like a wintertime gift. He took hold of the iron candleholder and dribbled the wax form of its once solid state onto the letter, sealing it until its desired reader held it in her hands.

He moved swiftly through the dark woods outside of his home, never stumbling for he knew this path so well. This once beaten path led to the girl who held his heart onto an invisible leash, his Red.

She leaned against the wood fence that encased her home from the woods that had once been her playground, listening to the children play in the space around the communal homes of the village. She wished she could go back to those happy times when she was a little girl but those years had passed out of her reach with so few months. Changes had taken place and damage was done that could not be fixed.

Her mother's eyes watched like a trickster crows from the kitchen to be sure of her daughter's whereabouts. She saw the sadness the coursed over her face as she stared out at the children.

"Red?!" She shouted from the window. The girl came to her mother's call.

"Ma'am?"

"Go to the box at the end of the drive and see if we have any mail for the day." Her eyes lit with excitement. It was a rarity now for her to be able to leave the containment of her home without her mother's permission. She gave a quick nod and curtsy as she left and ran in an unbefitting manner down the dirt drive, dust stirred in her trail as she reached the wooden box with simple numbers on it. She reached for the 6th box that could have easily been confused for the 9th because the number was hanging the wrong way.

To her disappointment there was no mail to carry back to her mother but beside the box was a basket that had never been there before. For some odd reason it called out to her for her to grab. So she did, and what she found was the last thing she would have ever thought.


	2. Chapter 2

Dear Red,

I pray you have forgiven me. I wander the woods at night searching for your scent. Strange and stalker-esque as this may sound, it is actually the highest compliment given by one such as myself.

A nose is a highly sensitive tool, and to search night after night for the one thing that isn't just food to you but something that just holds your attention for a final glance or sniff just so you can remember it. That in itself, alone, is a rarity for a wolf because we almost always think with our stomachs and brains, but oh-so hardly our hearts.

I've followed the wisp of your lost scent to ask for your forgiveness. I miss seeing you as you walk through the forest, basking in the sunlight, absorbing every golden ray with your perfect skin in each and every step. I smile at the memories of such days, but then frown upon some not too pleasing ones.

I believe that your dear, fragile granny might be coming down with a late winter's cold. The smoke comes pouring out of her chimney day and night, and she frequently entertains visits from your old friend, the huntsman.

He brings her wood to burn and gives her company, but I'm sure that she misses you as much as I, and would very much appreciate a visit very soon. One without my interference, I suspect.

Awaiting your response,

Wolf

_________

She stared down at the letter set upon on her bedside table as she knelt to read it by the low light of her lamp. Any bright sign of light would alert her mother that she was awake and she would take away the letter from the wolf. She read it once more before finally pulling out a spare sheet of parchment from her schooling alone with her own personal inkwell and pen. She would write, even if it would take several days to deliver just down the road, she would.

For some strange reason only she knew, the Wolf was her only chance at a link of freedom from the wooden fence and baked goods that overflowed the kitchen.

He strolled along the woods, whistling a little tune he had heard from the market not to far from there in the next town over. He had waited for over 3 days now, and still, no response. He was beginning to lose hope with each shifting of the sun in the sky that she might be pushing him further into the forest, that she still held an unbreakable grudge against him. That was until he saw that the basket had returned behind the box.

His heart soared as his body almost did as he ran back to his den to read what his Red had to say.


	3. Chapter 3

Dear Mr. Wolf,

I must say I wasn't expecting the basket, and certainly not the letter that awaited me inside. I understand that Gran is ill, and the huntsman is good company, but Mother has kept a tight lock and key on the door and a watchful eye on me considering the events that took place last time I ventured out into the woods and disobeyed her. So you may understand the difficulties that I must undergo just to reply to your letter.

As for my forgiveness; it will take a bit of time for me to completely forgive you for eating Gran and I but none-the-less I will forgive you in time.

Might I inquire what is with the sudden need to see me? I can hardly see reason why, I am not beautiful nor do I have riches beyond wildest dreams. We work hard for our keep: that is all.

Until we speak once more,

Red

He couldn't believe that she had written that. 'I can hardly see reason why, I am not beautiful nor do I have riches beyond wildest dreams.' This, alone, infuriated him. The Red that he knew loved everything and everyone. She played for hours on end and picked wild flowers from the forest for those dear and close to her but this, this Red was different. Could so many months with her mother change her that much? Could that small amount of time make her believe false truths that could be righted if all she did was look in a mirror and see for herself?

His pen moved at the speed of the wind to return the letter back to Red. She had awakened something the Wolf hadn't known or felt in a very long time; a hunger that only she could satisfy. She must know the truth from another's eyes; even if they are a Wolf's.

**AN: Sorry this is a short one.**


	4. Chapter 4

Dearest Red,

The fact that you do not see yourself as beautiful is shocking to say the least. Why, when I looked at you last, those many months ago, I saw a young woman filled with dreams and golden beliefs. I saw beauty in its most untainted form; with you brown locks of hair that curled 'round your face, framing your creamy, dreamy skin that I could only wish and dream to touch.

I could go on for eternity about your innocence but I will stop myself. The only reason I wish to see you is to simply just see what has become of you.

I, myself, haven't been fairing well in the past months that has followed out past meeting. The place where the huntsman sliced open my stomach has healed but the scar still remains to remind me of what an animal I once was.

I live in an abandoned home to the west of yours; the occupants decided to leave when they heard of the wolf sightings near their home. It is at least twice the distance from your home to your grandmother's, so you need not worry about the closeness of me. I am still a good run away from you.

Your Grandmother, however, has been feeling well these last few days because she has planted fresh flowers outside her door. I knocked upon it the other day to see how she was feeling since it had been a few days since the huntsman's last visit and I was met with the dark double barrels of a shotgun. Is that normal?

As Always,

Wolf

________

She sat silently by her bed while she read his words of her again. A small tear slipped and fell from its home and down her cheek. The words he wrote about her, she never believed that they could be written or spoke anywhere near her home, and yet they had.

The power and speed in which he had written them astounded her as well. She might as well had handed him the letter personally if it had saved him the time of waiting till her back was turned so he could reach inside the basket. She could only wish she were that quick, her mother had been making her postbox visits fewer and fewer, while no one noticed the dark little basket that hid behind it.

Once again the pen hit the paper and her response started.


	5. Chapter 5

Dear Mr. Wolf,

I do not know what to say to your description of what you see when you do see me. It has given me many mixed feelings knowing this has come from a wolf. But I thank you anyways, not often do I hear such sweet words to describe anything, let alone myself.

I'm glad to hear that you have found a home, though it doesn't make this situation any better knowing that you are still so near. This is not my personal opinion but a friendly precaution due to the fact that the hunters have made it a sport to kill as many of your kind as they can in one hunt. They say that it is black luck to have so many in one area at a time, that they would start challenging us for the territory. I do not believe in such myths, but I think that most of these men are just drunken husbands with excuses to shoot a gun and have a night away from home.

Stay safe, will you? I do not think that you are inclined to anymore scars such as the one that I have help cause, and for that I am sorry.

As for Gran, considering who you are, this will be normal. She hasn't truly gotten over her experience, or so Mother tells me. I haven't been able to see her since our first meeting, as I have previously mentioned.

Inside the basket lay fresh bread and a small flask of wine I have barrowed from the cellar; I give them to you as a so-called peace offering between the two of us, and to help you keep warm through this upcoming storm.

Mrs. Wormwood, our neighbor, says that there will be an ice storm coming and that it will be one of the worst that anyone has seen in a very long time.

With Warm Wishes,

Red

He read the letter and basket as he wandered in and out of trees as he made his way home. Inside his skin he could feel the temperature falling steadily to snow weather. This was to be the last kick of winter, its last breath before it lost the fight with spring till the next annual round.

The sweet smell of the bread tingled in his nostrils and lingered enough to tempt him for a nibble. The longer he walked by foot, the colder he became. Not even the heavy wool he wore could protect him from the raw ice that began to fall from the heavens in rock sized flakes. He began to run, he ran so hard and so fast he couldn't help but begin to turn back into the beast he hated so much. His body was numb as the flakes brushed past his muzzle and wide lashes.

With his basket safely between his jaws, he continued forth into the white abyss that was once the forest he knew every inch, every twig, and every burrowing hole of and still the snow came down harder. Ice formed around every surface that was exposed, Wolf included.


	6. Chapter 6

Hello Red,

I thank you for your concern and take your peace offering gladly. Your neighbor, Mrs. Wormwood I believe, was correct about the weather. Just after I had received your letter, snow began to fall, but as I walked along the beaten path the snow became so thick that I could no longer see in front of my nose. Thankfully I was able to change into a warmer coat for the remainder of my journey.

When I returned home, I had to dig through the spare feet of snow that had piled around the door and blocked me from gaining entrance. Once I did, I lit the fire and had to sit and watch myself being buried in until the horrible storm was over. Though the thought of your smile and your safe being warmed me more than any fire could.

After the storm, I checked on you Granny to see to see how she faired the storm. Once again I was met with twin barrels that belonged to her beloved gun. I told her why I was there and I apologized for my intrusion. I gave her the flash of wine that you had gifted me and I am sorry to re-gift such a lovely wine but it seemed that she could have used it more so than I.

She welcomed me in and made us a pot of fresh tea to take the chill out of us. I'm sorry to say, but I do believe her eyesight is standing on its last leg. Though I have changed much since you last saw me, she still offered me my tea in a bowl upon the floor. I was polite and took it in a cup. I have to admit, I did enjoy my time with her. I'm sorry that you could not be there with us as well.

To the one that's caught my heart,

Wolf

___________

He read his own words and yet he still could not bring himself to ask what he desperately wanted to ask the girl. All the words became more and more jumbled in his head with every letter he wrote, and each he received convinced him that this was wrong. That this was perverse and humiliating for both him and Red, but he must continue for that was what the plan called for.


	7. Chapter 7

She held the letter close to her chest, reading it without looking at the words, having memorized it completely in her excitement to capture the next letter that awaited her in the basket. Just at the thought of Wolf's sweet words made her heart sing so loud that she couldn't hear the footsteps as they approached her door, or the squeak of the handle as it turned, opening it for the world to see.

"What are you doing up this late?" Her mother asked, causing Red to jump out of her skin at her mother's voice.

"I-I was having bad dreams." She stammered her lie as she caught her breath and she slid the letter under the tousled sheets of her bed. Her mother knew that Red would sometimes stay up till all hours of the night due to horrible nightmares of dark woods and sharp teeth wanting to plunge deep into her skin.

"Hmm….I thought you were over those?"

"It was just the one, it was nothing. I…" Wolf's letters crossed her mind just then. "I was worrying about Gran, with the snow and all do you think I might be able to visit her tomorrow?"

Hello to you as well, Mr. Wolf,

I've some very exciting news that I suspect will please both you and myself. My mother has agreed to let me visit Gran finally. I'm only allowed the day however, and since I do not know the way to your home I was wandering if you might meet me at Gran's for tea, so we may be able to speak face to face for once and you would get what you have been asking me for so long. To see me.

I'll be going to visit Gran tomorrow, so hopefully I may see you there.

No need to reply just yet,

Red

He couldn't believe his eyes at what the tiny letter contained; he had never been so happy in his life and never so terrified at the same moment. If only he could send his letter and have her read it, even if he did he doubted that she would read it. But still, he would see his Red no matter what.


	8. Chapter 8

Her heart filled with joy as she filled her little basket her mother gave her for her Gran once more. She tried to ignore how eerily familiar this all seemed, she giggled at it all.

"Here, I want you to wear this. I fixed it for you since you've grown a bit from the last you wore it, but I think it still suits you." Her mother pulled out the long red cloak that had elaborate silver clasps at her neck and two slits at the sides for her arms to slip through.

The smile on her face couldn't have grown any bigger with appreciation and gladly wore the cloak. "I'll only be gone the day." Red said reassuringly.

"I know, I'll just miss you is all. Now you remember the rules? Don't speak with strangers, don't stop and dawdle, and the most important one of all…"

"Yes, Mother. I remember. Don't leave the beaten path. I'll be fine."

"Yes, well. You may say that now but I still remember when you didn't do as I said and you ended up in the stomach of a wolf." Both of their heads lowered at the bittersweet memory, the one that connected Red to her Wolf and the very same that almost killed a mother's heart with the death of not only her mother but her only child.

"I must go now if I am to be there before brunch." They said their goodbyes at the door and she was on her way.

Her mother's eyes were cold and hard as she watched the girl that was no longer hers walk down the dirt path that led to the forest. She reached behind her to a small stand and pulled a pouch of gold from the drawer. "I hope this is worth it all."

He rushed through the woods, searching for anything, any new scent that entered the woods, so that he could finally see with his own eyes what it was that had kept with his sick obsession of a girl in a red hood, but he knew that he too was being watched closely and would be hunted down like a mangy dog if he were to interfere with the preset plans already lain out.

There it was, the rose lavender soap that blew into the wind with long flowing red hair. Just with this single hint of a scent sent his imagination went wild at what could be awaiting him at the end of the beaten path. That was until the hand set itself firmly upon his shoulder, bringing him from his daydream and back into his living nightmare.

"What's wrong Warren? You look like you've seen a ghost." The monster chuckled, running a hand through his oily, uncombed hair. A scar lined the side of his face where the bullets dug deep as they still missed their target, curving around one dull, iris-less eye."Is she coming?"

"Yes, Alpha. She's just down the path, she be here in half an hours time." Every word that came from his mouth made him gag as it were the foulest thing he had ever laid eyes on in the dark forest.

The crooked smile on the Alpha's lips grew with these words, revealing more rotting, yellow teeth than before. "Good, I guess its time for a tea party then. Shall we?" He motioned for Warren to step in front of him to lead the way to Red's grandmother's house.


	9. Chapter 9

The forest was just as she had left, dark and dreary as spring fought through the remainders of winter's army. Tulips and Buttercups popped up along the last few feet of the path, the trail markings of her dearest Gran showing that home was right around the corner.

She was more than thrilled when she saw the picturesque, cookie-cutter house at the end of the flaming tulip lined drive that was once her playhouse but now her safety retreat.

Three knocks came from the door as her grandmother answered it. "Hello?"

"Hello Gran, I've brought you some baked goods from mother." Red smiled and handed the basket over to the elderly woman. It had been so long since she had seen the woman with large glasses and petite frame that always offered love and comfort when asked and even when not.

"Why thank you young lady, but may I ask who you might be?" The woman strained to look through her glasses at the girl on her doorstep but little did she know that her words cut through the girl's heart.

"What do you mean? Gran, don't you recognize me? It's Red." The smile on the sweet granny's face fell. She looked perturbed at the girl.

"Little girl, I don't know what sick joke you are playing at but my Red has been dead for months now, ever since the wolf attack. Now I want you to leave this house and I never want to see your face again. Good day." Her Gran scolded as she returned the basket and slammed the door in Red's face. Once the door was closed she went back to her tainted tea that awaited her next to her cross-stitch.

Red stood shocked with her basket in hand. The elderly woman, her Gran, thought she was dead for several months. Why? She asked herself. Wolf had said that he spoke of her often, or had he? Had she thought that up?

A snap of a twig and a series of low growls broke the silence and made Red turn to see the two men and three wolves behind them. One was greasy and disheveled with a sadistic grin cast on his face, while the other refused to look up and face her. He wore nicer clothes than the other and was freshly cleaned.

"Hello, Red." The greasy one said as he neared her. "I believe we have some unfinished business to attend to."


	10. Chapter 10

"Who-who are you?" The tremble in her voice made him hate himself all the more for doing this.

"There's no need to be afraid. We mean no harm." The other said lowly, not looking at her still. The greasy one looked at his friend strangely as he came closer to the prey. "If you come with us without a fight, no harm will come to you." He extended his arm in a gentlemanly manner towards Red.

"Oh bullocks!" The vulgar one shouted as he hit the gentleman's arm down. "We do mean harm to you, missy. We want to hurt you as much as you've hurt us!" He grabbed Red by the throat and lifted her into the air as if she weighted nothing but an angels' feather, but he squeezed the air out slowly in a torturous manner. "Do you want me to tell you a secret?" He hissed into her ear as he brought her down to his level, the tips of her toes could barely touch the ground as stars began to float around her vision. "Dying ain't the worst part of life. That's easy, it's the living that's hard and after this," He turned her head to the side to expose the luscious pale skin, and licked it, tasting the sweet flesh that wasn't his to taste. "Ooh, after this it'll be much harder." He chuckled wickedly as he tossed the girl over to wolves awaiting their commands.

"Take her back to the den." He ordered, watching the limp girl be dragged away by her once red cape that was now covered in mud.

"Is this all really necessary? We could just forget it all now, and let her go." Warren asked, holding back the anger that raged inside of him like an inferno of pure hatred towards the man that had touched what was his.

"What's gotten into you, brother? You're beginning to sound as if you actually have feelings for this human." He suavely walked over and rested his arm around his brother's neck. "Remember what this human in particular did to us. All we're doing is getting a little payback that is all."

"I know, Raul," He curled his fingers around his brother's arm as he shoved him off of him. "…but it wasn't her who did what happened to us. It was the huntsman."

Raul scoffed as he began to follow down the path in the forest with Warren close behind. "Yes, the huntsman. We've taken care of that old fart, and the old woman. All that is left is to take care of the girl, and I believe I will personally enjoy this one."

The hole in the pit of his stomach grew blacker with each word that his brother spoke of Red. "Alpha, my brother, I ask you once more, do not do this." Warren asked once they arrived outside the old, abandoned home he had mentioned in his letters.

"We've come too far to stop, she is the last. Relax Warren, how 'bout I give you a turn after me?" He jested towards his brother when a scream erupted from the house. "Oh, sounds like she's ready without me. Best not keep her waiting." Raul grinned mercilessly as he bound up the stairs in front of the home.


	11. Chapter 11

Warren rushed after the monster that was his brother, the monster that he could no longer contain when it came to something of his.

"NOOO!!!" Red screamed as 2 wolves held her down while the other tore at her bodice and Raul stood watching with glee. They had torn at the fabric on the sides and were still trying to loosen the last piece so their Alpha could begin what he had planned.

Warren's eyes burned at the sight. "Make them stop! Raul, make them stop!" He gave his brother his finally warning, "Make them stop or I will!"

. All Raul did was watch until the fabric finally gave way. Then he pushed Warren aside so he could begin his feast of revenge. The only trouble he believed he would have was the decision on which to begin first.

He couldn't stand watching anymore, he couldn't contain his hatred, and the anger that had built within him anymore. After this he couldn't remember anything but his Red laying on the floor crying as he lifted her into his lap.

His brother refused to stop; he had given him the choice. The events that followed weren't his fault, Wolf told himself as he held the crying girl in his arms looking around at the carnage that dripped down the boards of the once happy home into the sand below. The bloody knife beside him showed the crimson reflection showed him what he really was, deep down inside, a killer, a wolf. But the girl in his arms that held his heart on her sleeve kept him from being so, and he would never be again unless it was for her protection.

He swore this to himself silently as he carried her back to Gran's house where he would pour out the tainted tea they had been giving her and return everything back to normal.

"Wolf," She asked beside the dancing flames in the hearth of Gran's home, looking down at her dark tea as the blood filled images replayed in her mind on the reflective pool in her cup.

"Yes?"

"Thank you," She said looking up at him as the blossomed young woman she had now become, far from the little Red Riding Hood that everyone was so accustomed to. "for everything."

Wolf smiled faintly as he noticed this. "You're welcome."

Now you may ask, did they receive their happily ever after? Well let me tell you this, my friend. Happily Ever After just means that there was no more of their tale to tell but I'll tell you this as well, our tales do not end until we can no longer tell them, and yes, they did live happily even after with and without their fairy tale ending.


End file.
